A Long Walk Home
by Lugian Before Swine
Summary: Or, that fic where Saruhiko has dated plenty of people but never the right person, until the night he attends his first party. Then all hell breaks loose. Primarily Saruhiko/Misaki, with brief moments of Kusanagi/Awashima and Mikoto/Totsuka, and mentions of a bunch of other pairings involving Saruhiko. College AU, oneshot. Bear with me on the genres; this is a bit hard to classify.


**A/N: I really wanted to write a fic that incorporated all the pairings I ship involving Saru. Umm...please just roll with it? I promise there's a happy ending.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own K and I can only dream of making money from writing this.**

It's a Friday night and Saruhiko is dreadfully bored. He had spent the entire day studying, since he didn't have any classes, and the unrelenting textbook grind has left him restless and itching to do something to relieve the monotony.

So, naturally, he decides to attend a party.

Saruhiko has never been to a party before, but he's fairly sure he knows what he'll find: drunk people in varying states of undress, talking loudly or laughing uproariously or passed out on various items of furniture. He decides that it might be interesting to do some people-watching, and if possible, avoid getting drunk himself so that he might more accurately observe his surroundings.

This is how he finds himself walking off the main campus, down a street of primarily student-rented houses, most of which have deafening music blaring from them and people staggering around on the lawn, sloshing liquid in red cups and trying to win at some sort of game that looks as though it was created for elementary schoolers. Saruhiko picks the house with the least amount of people outside, in the hopes that no one will call out to him as he tries to enter, and this tactic works until he reaches the door of the house.

A short guy in a polo shirt with a suspicious-looking stain on it holds out his arm to bar the entry. "What's the password?" he asks, smirking widely.

"Please let me in so I can get drunk," Saruhiko says flatly, intending to do no such thing, but figuring it's the best thing to say.

The short guy nods enthusiastically. "Right on, bro! Just try not to puke on the rug in the living room; that thing was like hella expensive."

"Okay," Saruhiko answers after a moment's pause, and the guy swings his arm back to his side, freeing up the entranceway.

"Have fun!" he says, and Saruhiko nods curtly, walks past him into the house, and takes in the sight of his first college party: blaring music, girls shrieking, and the stench of alcohol assault him immediately. He heads towards where he thinks the kitchen will be, intending to find a non-alcoholic beverage so he can at least have something in his hand. Before he can get there, though, he spots someone he knows: Awashima Seri is recognizable even with her hair down and her back to him.

He can't even consider Awashima his first (and incidentally, only) girlfriend, as they only went on two dates in their freshman year of high school before she informed him, quite amicably, that she was simply too busy studying to have time for a boyfriend. Saruhiko hadn't really minded, as he had mainly gone out with her out of a speck of interest but a mountain of boredom.

Reliving the past is not something he wants to do right now, so he skirts his way around her through the crowd of people, managing to find the kitchen with relative ease. He opens the fridge, gently whacking a girl in the head, and finds a bottle of cola, which he opens and sniffs suspiciously. It doesn't smell like alcohol, so he grabs what he hopes is a clean cup off the counter and pours himself a glass. At least this way, no one will attempt to force drinks on him. He'd hate to get in a fight before he got any serious observation done.

There's an empty spot of wall to his right, just outside the kitchen, where there are fewer people, so he walks over and leans against it, casually observing the scene. He spots Awashima again, and notices that this time there's an arm around her waist. The arm belongs to a guy he doesn't know. _Hmm. Good for her_, he muses, before turning his attention back to the party at large.

After looking around for no more than 15 minutes, he's already bored again. Thankfully, the cola he's been sipping doesn't taste like alcohol at all, so at least in that aspect, he has triumphed. Unfortunately, college parties don't appear to be nearly as exciting as the media has made them out to be, and consequently Saruhiko is about to leave when he notices someone approaching him on slightly unsteady legs. As the someone gets closer, Saruhiko recognizes him as a guy from his algebra recitation, although Saruhiko doesn't know the guy's name.

He's waiting for Algebra Guy to teeter off towards a chair or something, but he just keeps coming closer until he's face-to-face (well, face-to-neck) with Saruhiko, who glances at him with slight apprehension.

"Hi," says Algebra Guy.

"Hello," says Saruhiko. "Do I know you?"

Algebra Guy pulls a pained look. "Maybe? I know you. You're in my math class."

"Yes, you do look familiar," Saruhiko obliges. _What does this guy want?_

"Fushimi Saruhiko," he says. It appears as though his eyes are glimmering.

"Yes."

"You don't know my name, do you?"

Saruhiko sighs, although it's barely audible. "Sorry, no."

"It's Yata Misaki." He pauses, seeming to consider something. "No one calls me Misaki. You should call me Yata."

A small smile creeps its way onto Saruhiko's face. Something about this guy is charming. Endearing, even. Saruhiko vows to call him Misaki—but maybe not out loud, yet.

"Anyway," Misaki blabbers on, "the reason I wanted to talk to you—man, it's so convenient that you're at this party—is because you're hot."

Saruhiko blinks, then smiles obligingly. Well. Isn't that something. "You think so?" he asks.

"Yeah, I—yeah." Misaki nods, and then quickly nods again, as if worried that he wasn't insistent enough in his agreement.

"And how drunk are you, exactly?" Saruhiko questions gently.

"Not that drunk!" Misaki says hastily. "I remembered you, right? Math class. I see you every Tuesday and Thursday. You always sit in the back, but across the room from me. Yesterday we were practicing how to multiply matrices—"

"Yes, yes, okay," Saruhiko cuts him off, smile growing. "Apparently, you are not that drunk."

Misaki nods fervently, then opens his mouth and literally gulps in air, which Saruhiko privately thinks looks rather painful. Then he says, "Just drunk enough to do this," and launches himself upwards, planting his mouth squarely over Saruhiko's.

Well. This was shaping up to be an interesting night, after all.

Saruhiko almost drops his cup in surprise, but barely manages to hold onto it. The kiss—if it can even be called that—is extremely brief, and Saruhiko is disappointed by this for the second it takes him to realize and consequently stop following Misaki as he retreats back down to his normal height.

_It must just be a reflex_, Saruhiko thinks. He opens his mouth to speak—to say what, he has no idea—but Misaki beats him to it.

"Wow. That was—that. I actually just did that." He's smiling, and it's stupid but it makes Saruhiko smile too. He just hopes that it wasn't a dare from one of Misaki's friends or something awful like that, because honestly, he wouldn't mind doing that again, perhaps many times, and for much longer.

Saruhiko just looks at him, unsure of what to say, and Misaki's smile gradually disappears.

"Oh God," he says suddenly, "I just _did that_." And now he looks mildly horrified, and this is all wrong, so Saruhiko says:

"We should—we should leave."

Misaki looks at him hopefully. "We?" he repeats. "Like, together?"

"Yes," Saruhiko says clearly, and places his cup on a nearby end table.

Misaki grins, raises a fist in the air, and shouts "YES!" Then, before Saruhiko can even fully process what has just happened, Misaki is dragging him by the arm towards the front door, tripping over the legs of some passed-out students before righting himself and nearly skipping out the door.

The short guy in the polo is still there, and he gives Saruhiko a knowing look before turning back to his beer.

_So_, Saruhiko thinks as Misaki continues to pull him across the lawn, _college parties_.

"Wait," Misaki says suddenly, stopping in his tracks. "Where are we going?"

It's at that moment that Saruhiko spots Awashima again, sitting on the curb with her—_boyfriend?_—Saruhiko supposes, and suddenly they're both getting up and turning around and—

"Fushimi," Awashima says in surprise. At the exact same time, the guy next to her says "Yata," and then they both look at each other, then back to the people whose names they had called.

Saruhiko sighs. Might as well make this quick. He jerks his arm up a little so that Misaki's hand, which had been around his wrist, is now holding his own hand instead. Misaki looks at him for a brief second, wide-eyed, then says, "Hey, Kusanagi! This is the hot guy I was telling you about!"

This is indeed quite a mess. "Hello, Awashima," Saruhiko says courteously. "I hope you are enjoying your evening. Great to see you again, but we'd better be off now." He looks to Misaki, this guy he's just properly met mere minutes ago, and hopes he understands.

He does. After this Kusanagi guy says "Umm, congrats?" and tightens his hold around Awashima's waist, Misaki chirps, "Thanks! See you later!" and then continues tugging Saruhiko across the lawn.

Once they're down the street and out of earshot, Misaki asks, "You know her? That guy, that's my friend, Kusanagi, and she's his girlfriend, only I hadn't met her til just now—"

"Yeah," Saruhiko says, a bit dazed in the face of this whole situation, "we used to date."

Misaki stops walking and stares up at Saruhiko. "You and that chick? Really?"

"Yes, but it didn't last very long at all," Saruhiko says quickly, wondering why he feels the need to explain himself to this guy. Now that they're out of the dim lighting of the crowded house and onto the streetlight-illuminated sidewalk, Saruhiko takes a good look at Misaki. He's cute, Saruhiko concludes, and nice enough to be around, and this is college, and a relief from boredom. He doesn't know how far this is going to go—hell, he doesn't even know where Misaki is taking him—but he decides it doesn't really matter. It's not as though he's inexperienced; this isn't a big deal, it's just a fun thing to take his mind off schoolwork.

Misaki seems to ponder this answer for a moment, then abruptly says, "Can I kiss you again?"

"Maybe after we get inside," Saruhiko says lightly.

"Right, right," Misaki mutters, and he begins walking again. "I don't know anything about you," he says as they turn a corner, and he sounds excited, like it's a good thing that they're practically strangers. "I think I'm gonna wanna know, though, at some point." Ahh. So that's what that meant.

Saruhiko is about to say "Perhaps tomorrow morning," when someone passes them on the sidewalk, then abruptly turns around and says "Fushimi?" in an astonished tone.

Saruhiko recognizes that voice. It feels like something has dropped into the pit of his stomach. Maybe if he just keeps walking, the voice won't bother him again—but Misaki has turned around, so Saruhiko is kind of forced to turn as well.

"Good evening, Akiyama. How are you?"

"I'm—" he breaks off and stares at Misaki, who looks back questioningly, then his gaze shifts to their joined hands. "I'm fine, thanks, good to see you, I have to go now." And then he turns and walks away very quickly.

"Who was that?" Misaki asks immediately.

Saruhiko sees no point in lying, so he gently tugs Misaki by the hand in the direction they had been heading, and says casually, "An ex-boyfriend."

"What?!" Misaki shouts. "You dated him and Kusanagi's girlfriend?"

"Not at the same time," Saruhiko says, smirking.

Misaki huffs. It's awfully childish, but he's drunk, so Saruhiko supposes he can forgive him. "Fine. Let's just get to my apartment. I hope my roommate is gone."

"I hope so too," Saruhiko says quietly, but Misaki has apparently heard him anyway, because he grins and begins walking faster.

"How far away is your apartment?" Saruhiko asks after a moment.

"Oh," Misaki says, "about a 15-minute walk from here. I think. I'm not completely sure I know where we are." He giggles.

"Okay," Saruhiko says levelly. "Tell me where you live." Misaki tells him. It is indeed a 15-minute walk from their current location.

"Did you go to that party alone?" Saruhiko asks after there's been a silence between them for a little too long. They're still holding hands. Saruhiko doesn't mind.

"Yeah," Misaki says. "I tried to get Kamamoto to go with me—he's one of my friends—but he didn't want to so yeah I was alone and that's why I drank as much as I did but then it all worked out because you were there! And now you're here! You're coming to my apartment…" Misaki trails off, sounding a little nervous. "Do you want to?"

Saruhiko almost laughs. "Idiot. Of course I want to; I would have ditched you a long time ago if I didn't."

"Oh," Misaki says, sounding relieved. "That's good. You know, I'm not that drunk, you don't have to worry that you're, like, taking advantage of me or something—"

This time, Saruhiko does laugh. "I'm not worried about that," he says. "You seem coherent enough."

"I don't know what that means," Misaki says honestly, and Saruhiko is about to admonish him for his apparently small vocabulary when a group of people heading towards them catches his eye. He recognizes those people; specifically, he recognizes the two leading the group, who are also…holding hands?

"What," Saruhiko says out loud. No. No, no, no. This could not be happening, how many of his exes were they going to run into today, Misaki would think he was some kind of whore and never mind that, he didn't actually feel bad, it was just awkward and—

"Saruhiko!" a happy voice shouts from a few yards in front of them. "Oh my gosh, do you have a new boyfriend? How exciting! Can I hug you anyway?" The source of the voice lets go of the hand holding his and rushes over to them. He looks to Misaki. "Can I hug him?"

"You don't have to ask his permission, and anyway, the answer is no from me," Saruhiko says flatly.

"Saruhiko," Misaki hisses in what he probably thinks is a quiet voice. "Who is this guy?"

"Me? Totsuka Tatara! Nice to meet you!" he chirps. "What's your name?"

By this point, the guy who had been holding Totsuka's hand has caught up to them, and he looks from Totsuka to Saruhiko, seeming to miss Misaki entirely. "Saruhiko," he says flatly.

"Mikoto," Saruhiko returns. He tugs at Misaki's hand. "We should get going—"

"Where are you guys headed?" Totsuka asks, and before Misaki can respond, Mikoto has taken Totsuka's hand again and started pulling him away. "Let's just leave them alone, okay?"

"Okay. Bye, you two! Stay safe! Be sure to—mmphh—" and that, Saruhiko is sure, is the sound of Mikoto's hand covering Totsuka's mouth.

"Let me guess," Misaki says irritably as they continue walking. "You dated him too?"

"Yes," Saruhiko says. Once again, there's no reason to lie or make a big deal out of it. "And the other guy, too."

"Huh?!" Misaki shouts. "But, but they were holding hands! They were dating! And you dated them both at the _same time_?"

"No, no. At different times. And I guess they're dating now but they certainly didn't use to be. Look, I've dated a lot of people, but I've never cheated on any of them," Saruhiko says. Maybe he owes Misaki a bit of an explanation, since all of his exes apparently decided to cross their path tonight.

Misaki looks at him appraisingly for a second, then he nods once. "Okay. That's okay. It's just weird because—I've never dated anyone." He looks down at his feet suddenly and lets out a breath that could very well be a sigh.

"Misaki," Saruhiko says before he's realized his mistake.

It doesn't seem to matter, though, because Misaki doesn't even reprimand him, he just looks up and says, "What?"

"It's okay to have never dated anyone." Although this means Saruhiko might have to be a little more slow and cautious with him than he had anticipated. "I've dated too many people. We even out."

Misaki smiles a little at that, and squeezes Saruhiko's hand in his. "We're almost there," he says, and Saruhiko feels a little twinge in his chest and that is definitely, definitely not good.

He can't be falling for Misaki this quickly. They had literally just met and Saruhiko doesn't know anything about him and aside from that, Misaki is still a bit drunk and—

They round the next corner and a large apartment building comes into view. "There it is!" Misaki says happily, and he begins running, so Saruhiko has no choice but to run as well.

They jog past the first couple of doors and enter one about halfway down the side of the building. Immediately, there is a metal staircase, which they ascend, and then another one, and they go up that one too. Misaki stops in front of the first door on the right and lets go of Saruhiko's hand to fish around in his pocket for his key.

That's when the door across from them opens, the first door on the left, and Saruhiko's breath hitches.

Misaki turns around. "Oh, hey, Munakata!"

Munakata freezes. No one says anything for a moment. Misaki looks from Saruhiko to Munakata and back again, then says, "Don't tell me you guys know each other?" in a suspicious tone.

Munakata recovers first. "We do indeed," he says casually. "I haven't seen you in quite a while, Saruhiko. How have you been?"

Saruhiko stares at him. "Fine," he grinds out eventually, "I've been fine."

"Good to hear," Munakata says, smiling. "Well, I'll be going now; it was nice to—"

"Reishi," Saruhiko says before he can stop himself. _No, no, no, what are you doing, not here, not now—_he looks to Misaki, who is staring at him questioningly, but Saruhiko can tell there is hurt in his eyes and Saruhiko knows he can't keep dwelling on the past and besides—

"Goodnight," he says firmly before Munakata has a chance to respond, and he turns to Misaki and silently begs him to open the door.

Misaki complies, hurriedly sticking his key in the lock and swinging the door open, and as they step inside, Munakata says "Goodnight" before Saruhiko slams the door shut behind them.

Saruhiko stares at Misaki for a minute, then looks around his apartment.

Misaki waits. Saruhiko looks back to him.

"Yes, I used to date him," he says finally. "And he broke up with me, and it was very messy, and at the time I thought he was the only person I'd ever love and all that garbage," Saruhiko says quickly, wanting to get this out of the way. "None of my other breakups were particularly painful. That one was. I…" he trails off, not wanting to get into the details. "I wasn't…healthy for a while afterwards." He takes a deep breath, remembering the experience. It's something he hopes he never has to endure again.

"You know," Misaki says suddenly, "I have no idea what that feels like, so I can't be of any real help to you, but if he broke up with you, he was probably a giant douchebag who never deserved you in the first place." He nods firmly, as if indicating he is satisfied with this explanation, and Saruhiko grins broadly.

"You're right," he says. "I'm glad we're not together anymore. And would you like to know why?"

"Why?" Misaki asks, all curiosity, gazing up at him with a fire in his eyes.

"Because if we were, I wouldn't be able to do this." In five seconds flat, he has Misaki's back against the door and his tongue in Misaki's mouth, and despite everything that happened on the way to Misaki's apartment, Saruhiko is so, so glad he decided to go to that party.


End file.
